DANCE
ASABAB Tonight;
College Tomorrow
Texas AaM
The B
College
alion
EDITORIAL
“They Mean Business’
Fish Contract
PUBLISHED IN THE INTEREST OF A GREATER A & M COLLEGE
VOLUME 46
COLLEGE STATION (Aggieland), TEXAS, FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 14, 1947
Number 35
Andrews, Bruce In Run-off For Veterans’ Presidency
Last Minute Agreement Is
Made Before Ballot Count
Two Dances Will Start Spring Season
Asabab and All-College Ball
Liven Coming Week-End
Opening the spring social season on the campus is a
weekend of entertainment including two dances in Sbisa
Hall. Tonight is the first annual Beaux Arts Ball of the
Architecture Society since the war. Noted as the only cos
tume affair held on the campus, the architects have gone
all-out in preceding years to make their dance a success.
Following the ASABAB on Saturday night is an All-
College Dance, the first of the semester. Music for both
affairs will be furnished by the'*'
Aggieland Orchestra. The an
nounced times for the two dances
are as follows: ASABAB from
8:30 to 1 and All-College Dance
from 9 to 12. Price of the Archi
tect Ball is $3.00.
Signs and posters announcing
the Architects Ball have been seen
in every part of the campus and
run rampart, it is reported,
throughout the fourth floor of the
Academic Building where the Arch
itecture Dept, is located. The
theme of the affair, which was se
lected by the Society members, is
Frustrated Ambitions. Costumes
are supposed to represent the sup
pressed desires of the wearer.
With the touted imagination of
the architect students, the patrons
to the ASABAB should present a
sight which may be of campus
wide appeal. But when Sbisa Hall
has been cleared of the debris of
tonight, the All-College will go in
to full swing.
Pay Fees Now
The second installment fee,
payable February 1-19, will be
as follows:
Board to March 19 $33.60
Room Rent to March 19.. 7.00
Laundry to March 19 2.50
Total
$43.10
Waterworks and
Vehicle Schools
Opened This Week
The twenty-ninth annual Texas
Waterworks and Sewerage Short
School and the third annual Motor
Vehicle Fleet Supervisors short
course were opened February 10
with welcome speeches by Gibb
Gilchrist, president of the college.
The Waterworks and Sewerage
School, held in Sbisa Hall with
313 present, will end Thursday
with licensing tests for waterworks
and sewerage operators. Joe B.
Winston, Weslaco engineer, is
president of the organization.
E. L. Williams, Industrial Ex
tension Service chief, is directing
the five-day Motor Vehicle course.
Williams said that a feature of
the course will be the use of a
specially-adapted Dixie Trailways
bus for scientific testing of drivers
and that any one interested in
learning his skill as a driver would
be welcome to take the test, pro
vided time allowed. Sixty-four en-
rollees attended the first meeting
of the course to be held in the
Texas Engineers library.
Civil Service Asks
For Training Men
A civil service examination was
announced today for Training Spe
cialist. Salaries will range from
$3,397.20 to $5,905.20.
No written test is required for
this examination. Applicants will
be rated on the basis of their
training and experience. Appli
cants must have reached their 18
birthday but must not have pass
ed their 62nd birthday on the
closing date for receipt of appli
cations.
These age limits do not apply
to veterans’ preference, provided
they have not reached the age for
automatic retirement.
Applications must be on file with
the Fourteenth U. S. Civil Ser
vice Regional Office, 210 South
Harwood Street, Dallas, Texas,
not later than February 26, 1947.
Application forms and further
information may be obtained from
any first or second-class post of
fice.
Short Course For
Highwaymen Soon
The twenty-first annual Texas
Highway Short Course will be held
March 11-13, Professor J. A. Orr
of the civil engineering depart
ment, course director announced
today.
The first day of the course will
be devoted to a meeting between
state highway department heads
and district engineers, with DeWitt
Greer, state highway engineer
presiding. The next two days will
be occupied with discussions of
current highway problems and
techniques, Orr said.
Grocery Bills
Going Down As
Planters Meet
Are your grocery bills too high?
Do you, as a married veteran, have
too much spare time on your hands
after tending to baby, going to
class, and taking care of household
chores ?
Well, F. R. Brison, of the Hor
ticulture department, is holding
a meeting of prospective vege
table gardeners Monday after
noon, February 17, at 5 p.m.
The veteran growers will meet
in Room 309, Agriculture Build
ing.
It is his plan to prepare plots of
land, as space permits, to be divi
ded among the future gardeners. A
nominal fee will be charged for
the preparation of the land for
tilling, and Brison plans to hold
classes of instruction. The cost
will be low enough to meet the
pocketbook of all veterans. He
hopes to make greenhouse facilities
available to them.
Such an idea, Brison believes,
would benefit a great number of
veterans in reducing grocery bills.
Employees’ Dinner,
Dance Set Feb. 20
The next meeting of t h e
College Employees Dinner
Club will be held in Sbisa
Hall Thursday, February 20,
at 7 p. m. Tickets at $1.25
per plate are on sale at the
Aggieland Inn and should be
purchased prior to Wednes
day noon, February 19.
Bridge, dominoes, and other
games will be held in Sbisa Hall
Lounge following the dinner. How
ever, dancing as usual will be the
main attraction in the main din
ing room after dinner.
The dinner-dance is open not on
ly to college employees but also
to other residents of the communi
ty, it was stated. Guests from
out-of-town are especially w e 1-
come.
To Pick Lovliest Tessies
Masters to Choose TSCW Beauties
At George Washington Birthday Ball McFaddeil Receives
Plaque for Wheat
Bandleader Frankie Masters will select the beauty for
each of the four classes at Texas State College for Women
when nominees are presented during the intermission of the
George Washington Birthday Ball at A&M, Feb. 22. The
four girls chosen will be featured in the Daedalian, College
yearbook, as class beauties.
A- During intermission Gloria Ech
ols, Daedalian editor, will intro
duce the sixteen nominees, four
from each class, against the back-
'Heaven’ Might Be
35 Miles From Here
If Blinn Gets Girls
“Heaven” might be only 35 miles
away. For Blinn College at Bren-
ham is opening its rolls to girls
from outside Washington County,
and filling up its large women’s
dormitory, now half empty.
Blinn College is a two-year lib
eral arts junior college owned by
Washington County, and up to now
enrollment has been limited to stu
dents from that county. Although
the school has more than its quota
of boys—many of whom will come
to A & M after their two years
at Blinn—the number of girls is
far below that for which accomo
dations are available. Girls are
housed in a dormitory built about
twelve years ago.
Registration for the spring se
mester is now in progress and it
remains to be seen how many will
enter. Because it is so near, college
authorities are hoping for many
registrants from College Station
and Bryan.
Blinn was founded as a Meth
odist school in 1883, but became
a non-sectarian county school in
1934. It has a campus of 35 acres
on the edge of Brenham. The
president, Dr. C. F. Schmitt, is
leaving August 31 and the school
is seeking a new prexy to take
charge at that time.
Aggie Wives Circle, WSCS
Plan Joint Meeting Monday
The Aggie Wives’ Circle will
meet at the A. & M. Methodist
Church Monday, February 17, at
7:30 p.m., in a joint business ses
sion with the Women’s Society of
Christian Service. Mrs. Don Rid
dle, reporter, urges members to
attend.
Are You Sure You Want To Go
Back To 'The Good Old Days'?
by Jack Gray
“Schoolmarms” of yesteryear and other advocates of the “Spare the
rod and spoil the child” creed would turn over in their graves if it were
possible for them to observe routine college life of the present.
Those straight laced matrons of another century would lift their
noses in scorn and scream aloud-f 1
at the progressive changes that
have accompanied education and
the educated way of life.
If you don’t believe it take a look
at the rules and regulations gov
erning the Mt. Holyoke College
for girls in “the good old days”:
1. Admission. No young lady
shall become a member of this
school who cannot kindle a fire,
wash potatoes, and repeat the mul
tication table.
2. Outfit. No cosmetics, per
fumeries or fancy soap will be al
lowed on the premises.
3. Exercise. Every member of
this school shall walk at least a
mile every day, unless a freshet,
earthquake, or some other calam
ity prevents.
4. Company. No member of this
school is expected to have any
male acquaintances unless they are
retired missionaries or agents of
some benevolent society.
5. Time at the Mirror. No mem
ber of this institution shall tarry
before the mirror more than three
consecutive minutes.
6. Reading. No member of this
school shall devote more than one
hour each week to miscellaneous
reading. The Atlantic Monthly,
Shakespeare, Scott’s novels, “Rob
inson Crusoe,” and other immoral
works are strictly forbidden. The
Boston Recorder, Missionary Her
ald, and Washington’s Farewell Ad
dress are earnestly recommended
for light reading.
ground music provided by the Mas
ters band. Although the dance is
not formal, the beauties will be
gowned in evening-length dresses
for their presentation. Senior
class nominees are: Marjorie Hel-
bach, El Dorado, Ark.; Evelyn
Rust, Chapin, Iowa; Jean Swint,
Paducah; and Alice Barrett, Lo
renzo.
Junior nominees are: Adele Aus
tin, Dallas; Katherine Blankenship,
Gainesville; Norma Walker, Am
arillo; and Alleen Simpson, Tem
ple. From the Sophomores come
Oretha Cornelius, Crosbyton; Hil
da Harkness, Texarkana; Mary
Jane Ramsey, Timpson; and Laura
Sessions, Waxahachie. The fresh
man class will be represented by
Mimi Hicks, Fort Worth; Helen
Luques, Wichita Falls; Kathleen
Reed, Olyey; and Shirley Shoe
maker, Waxahachie.
Winners will not be announced
until May 3, date of the Senior
Formal Dance at TSCW. Miss
Echols will present the winning
beauty from each class at that in
termission.
Arriving by special TSCW bus
Saturday afternoon, February 22,
the sixteen nominees will be on
the A&M campus Saturday after
noon, where they will be met by
escorts provided by the Aggies.
The girls will stay in a dormitory,
and will be accompanied by Miss
Echols, Mary Beth Foshee, Daeda
lian Business Manager, and a mem
ber of the TSCW faculty. They
will leave A&M sometime Sunday
afternoon.
Cotton Ball Date
Change to Apr 18
The Agronomy Society announ
ces a change in the date of the
Cotton Style Show and Ball from
March 28 to April 18, due to in
creased possibility of presenting
Miss Hilma Seay, 1947 Maid of
Cotton here at that time.
Miss Seay, sponsored by the Na
tional Cotton Council, will be ter
minating her world tour March
28 in Paris, France, and it would
be impossible for her to be here
until a later date in April.
Miss Seay was chosen from a
group of southern girls for the
purpose of modeling a complete
cotton wardrobe in style shows
here and abroad this spring. Pre
paration for her tour included a
course in modeling under Harry
Conover.
The Style Show held at A&M
this year in conjunction with the
Cotton Ball is being presented by
Sanger Bros of Dallas. It is un
der their auspices that Miss Seay
will appear.
Eisberg With Byrd
The chief medical operative on
the Byrd Antarctic Expedition is
named Eisberg—Commander Har
ry G. Eisberg. What do you know!
St. Valentine
Dance Slated
At Annex Sat.
Howard Peach and his Hust
lers will play for the Annex
Valentine Dance Saturday
night. Also on the program
for the night is a return engage
ment of the Melody Maids, a chor
al group from Beaumont.
Sponsoring the dance is the com
bine forces of the Annex cadets
and veterans. The affair will be
gin at 8:30 p.m. and last until
midnight. Room accomodations
for dates will be located in the
Student Center, it was announced.
Decorations of the Center will
be in Valentine motif, under the
direction of Mrs. Ann Hilliard and
W. W. Dominy. The appearance
of the choir is in answer to a
special request of the Annex stu
dents because their previous per
formance was so well liked, it
was said.
A plaque honoring Dr. Edgar
S. McFadden, agronomist of the
Agricultural Experiment Station,
was presented to the nationally
known grain expert at the Texas
Chemurgic Council conference at
San Antonio February 13-14.
Dr. McFadden received a $2,500
award from Reader’s Digest ear
lier in the year for his wo^k in
developing a new hardy strain of
wheat. He was also the recipient
of one of The Battalion annual
awards for signal achievement.
Three other members of the col
lege system were speakers at the
conference. They are Dr. A. A.
Jakkula, executive director of the
A. & M. Research Foundation, who
spoke on “Chemurgic Research in
Texas”; John Leahy, director of
the Cotton Research Committee of
Texas; and E. D. Marshall, chief
of the Forest Service products lab
oratory at Lufkin.
Research Contract With
Fiberglass Corp. Completed
Completion of its petroleum de
salting research contract with the
Fiberglass corporation has been
announced by the A. & M. College
Research Foundation.
Research under Foundation lead
ership on use of fiberglas for sep
arating salts from petroleum, car
ried on in the college chemical en
gineering department, resulted in
a new method of desalting, cheap
ness and desirability of which
has attracted favorable notice from
a number of refining companies,
Dr. A. A. Jakkula, Foundation dir
ector, said.
In a message to Dr. Jakkula, the
Fiberglas corporation described it
self as a “completely satisfied and
enthusiastic customer”. Patent
possibilities developing from the
fiberglas research now are being
processed by the Foundation.
Trustees of A & M Research
Foundation to Meet Feb. 24
Trustees of the A. & M. College
Research Foundation will hold
their quarterly meeting here Feb
ruary 24, Executive Director A.
A. Jakkula announced today.
Col. W. J. Baird To
Teach Teachers
“New Ideas in Teaching” will
be the subject of a series of
talks to be given at A. & M.
February 24-26 by Col. W. J.
Baird, Chief of the Training
Section of the Army Command
and Staff College, Fort Leaven
worth, Kansas, Dr. F. C. Bol
ton, dean of the college, has
announced.
Col. Baird has had long ex
perience in training the mem
bers of the faculty at the Com
mand College, Dr. Bolton said.
No Presidential Candidate Receives
Majority; Student Life Also Affected
In the most hotly contested veteran elections ever held
on the campus, William S. (Big Bill) Andrews and A. D.
(Dave) Bruce each polled a large number of votes for pres
ident of the Veterans Association, but neither gained a ma
jority. Under an agreement made between candidates before
the votes were counted, the two will take part in a run-off
election, to be held February 19. A run-off on the student-
life committee post will also be held at the same time, with
1 ♦"Marvin Brown and Arthur Buckner
contesting. All other elections
were satisfactorily decided by ma
jority votes this week.
Shortly before time for the
polls to close, candidates for of
fice found that the Veteran Stu
dents’ Constitution contained no
provisions for a run-off election.
The present constitution does
not specify whether a plurality
or a majority constitutes final
election, nor does it specify that
a run-off election will be held
between the two top candidates
in the event that neither receives
majority of the vote.
Jn order that this ommission
by the constitution would not
invalidate the election, a meeting
of the candidates was called
Wednesday night prior to the
counting of the vote to decide
the procedure to be followed.
With three candidates absent, a
10 to 4 vote carried in favor of a
run-off election in the event of
a plurality result.
It was further decided that a
rally for platform speeches would
be held in the Assembly Hall
Tuesday evening February 18, at
7 p.m. At that time the two
candidates in the run-off elec
tion in each office will present
campaign speeches.
Run-off elections, if the need
warranted, were set for Wednes
day February 19, from 8 a.nu
to 5 p.m. in the rotunda of the
Academic Building.
Any amendment to the above
effect, regarding run-offs in
plurality vote, to be added to the
present constitution would have
to originate from the Board of
Representatives and then put to
a vote of 51 per cent of the reg
istered members.
Andrews received 357 of the
1082 total votes polled; A. D. Bruce
had 330 ballots. Trailing these two
were T. C. Brennan with 199; Bill
Murphy, 135; James Kelly, 23; and
David Elliott, 20.
A close vote determined the suc
ceeding vice-president as Robert
Poison with a 553 to 502 win over
W. R. Steyman. Sam Williams is
the next treasurer of the organiza
tion: he was the only one to
file for that position.
Close Secretary Race
The closest vote of the election
was for the office of secretary.
By a narrow margin of 12 ballots
Ed Fisher was elected over Wil
liam Taylor, the voting being 521.
Bottling Short
Course to Prime
Soda Pop Makers
Thirty-three owners and super
visors of bottling plants were busy
at A. & M. this week brushing up
on the latest wrinkles in “soda
pop” manufacture, but only one
of them had the answer to the in
dustry’s $64 question—how to get
more sugar?
The exception is J. J. Rodrigues,
who traveled all the way from
Georgetown, British Guiana, to
attend the third annual American
Bottlers of Carbonated Beverages
short course, in session here.
Rodrigues, who makes Pepsi
Cola and other brands of soft
drinks in the South American cap
ital, finds all the cane sugar he
wants available there. Even so,
he wishes he could obtain more
fine, granulated sugar.
And Lome Prentiss, who came
down from northern Ontario to
“see why Texans talk so much a-
bout Texas”, could use much more
of the sweet stuff, even though the
Canadian government allows him
20 percent more than American
bottlers get.
Faculty members voluntarily are
lecturing on subjects allied to the
carbonated beverages manufactur
ing trade at the short course, which
opened February 3 and continues
through February 20. Experts of
the ABCB, which originated the
short course at A. & M. in 1945
and now sponsors it at three other
colleges throughout the nation,
present practical applications of
new scientific information.
Such subjects as refrigeration,
chemistry of water, syrups, plant
operation, maintenance and a num
ber of others will be covered thor-
ougly in the three-weeks course,
according to Wendell R. Horsley
local course director. Henry E.
Medbery of Washington, D. C.,
technical director of the ABCB, is
general supervisor.
Early Days Of A&M Among
Aged Texan’s Reminiscences
by Vick Lindley
“Sully? Oh, you mean Gen. Ross? Yes, I often saw him on the
campus. He was a fine man, and everyone thought highly of him.
He stood well.”
With other reminiscences of the early days of A. & M., Mrs. Molly
King Roberson of Houston kept a+
Battalion reporter busy taking
notes for an hour this week. Mrs.
Roberson, who will be 90 in June,
remembers the college campus
when not a building stood here. She
picked dewberries on the site of
the Academic Building early in
1876, when A. & M. was on paper,
but not yet a physical reality.
With a chuckle Mrs. Roberson
told about an old college romance,
when Professor Harrington wooed
and won “Sully” Ross’s daughter.
Harrington himself was later pres
ident of the college.
Mrs. Roberson was away from
the locality during the time that
the early buildings were erected.
When she came back, there were
three brick buildings—Gathright,
Austin and Pfeiuffer—and five
frame houses for the faculty. A-
mong the teachers at that^ time
was Professor Bringhurst, son-in-
law of Sam Houston.
Mrs. Roberson lived for many
years in Bryan, where her father
founded the First Baptist Church
in a vacated saloon. Many of her
nephews and uncounted numbers
of her descendents and relatives
attended A. & M. She now has
two great - great - grandchildren
living in Bryan. (Their dad is Ag-
gie-ex Warner Brundrette.)
The Battalion reporter suggest
ed that Mrs. Roberson ought to go
to Hollywood and appear on Tom
Brenneman’s “Breakfast in Hol-
(See EARLY DAYS on Page 4)
The office of sergeant-of-arms
of the Veterans’ Association and
two positions on the Mess Com
mittee will be open for filing
until noon Saturday, February,
15, due to the runoff election
next Wednesday, president pro
tem Dave Bruce has announced.
to 509. The most decisive win of
the election was Karl Wallace’s
victory over Joe Sonley for parlia
mentarian. The voting ran 691 to
320.
In the race for the student life
committeeman Marvin Brown re
ceived the largest number of votes,
377, and was followed by Arthur
Buckner with 248 ballots. The
other two candidates for this of
fice were Charlie Murray who
polled 211 votes and John Garrity
with 186.
Murray Supports Buckner
Another uncontested office was
that of mess committeeman. Only
one filing was made for the posi
tion which was open for three
members. Charles Kirkham, Jr.
will fill one of the positions.
Charlie Murray in a statement
issued yesterday said, “I wish to
thank the students who voted for
me in the recent election for stu
dent life committeeman. In the
run-off I pledge my suport to Ar
thur Buckner, who I feel is quali
fied for the position and who is an
active member of several campus
organizations”.
Write-in Votes Invalid
Several ‘‘write-in votes were
polled in the election. There were
two votes cast for Robert F. Bur
tin and six votes for David Ellie
for the office of sergeant-at-ari
Also written in on a ballbt was
S. Knapp for mess committeen
The Veteran Association cong
tion provides, however, that
in votes will not be considere'**—
id in an election.